Vowels 10 and 20, /ʌ/ versus /ʊə/    8 pairs       [bunbourn.html]

The /ʌ/ vowel is spelled with <u>. The /ʊə/ vowel is spelled <our> or <oor>.

This is a contrast between a short vowel and a diphthong, fairly close in starting tongue positions. It is potentially a problem for learners, but there are so few pairs that it does not matter.

The density figure is 0.66%. The set makes 5 semantic contrasts for a loading of 62.5%.

 

buzz boors 
bun bourn 	 
  buns bourns
bus bourse 
  buses bourses 
hurry houri 
  hurries houris 
mud moored 

John Higgins, Shaftesbury, December 2009